Game-U

Choose from Four Options

$29 for one month of weekly Adventurer game-design classes for one child 6–8 years old ($66 value)

$49 for one month of weekly Explorer game-design classes for one child 8–10 years old ($99 value)

$59 for one month of weekly Pioneer game-design classes for one child 10–12 years old ($125 value)

$79 for one month of weekly Voyager game-design classes for one child 12 or older ($160 value)

What Kind of Game Do You Want to make?

If you’re new to gaming, check out our breakdown of video-game types for help selecting a portal into a virtual world of fantasy.

Role-Playing Game: Originally born from old pen-and-paper role-playing games (RPGs) such as Dungeons and Dragons, these games require players to complete a series of quests as they progress toward a linear story’s conclusion. Plot and character interaction are important here, and you’ll often take a large role in defining your character’s traits and skills.Great if you were a kid who: acted in the school play; customized your Barbies with haircuts and crayoned-on makeupExamples:Diablo, Final Fantasy, Mass Effect

First-Person Shooter: These games put powerful weapons in your hands, and instead of controlling a puppet-like character on screen, you’ll see the world from your character’s eyes. There are options for story- and mission-based play, and shooter games often sync with an online platform that lets you face off against players from around the world.Great if you were a kid who: turned every inanimate object into a gun; took fencing lessonsExamples:Call of Duty, Halo, Doom

Open World: Instead of following a strictly linear story, open-world games nestle a core story inside a large world full of dozens—if not hundreds—of side quests and adventures. While the main story may take no more time to complete than a standard game, the additional quests allow for hours of extra gameplay.Great if you were a kid who: buried treasure in the back yard and drew elaborate mapsExamples:Skyrim, Red Dead Redemption, No Man’s Sky

Massively Multiplayer Online Game: MMOGs are most often played on PCs and require an internet connection. Games are constantly populated with characters created by thousands of players. They might team up—in groups of 2 or 200—to accomplish quests, or they might fight against each other.Great if you were a kid who: played sports; campaigned for class presidentExamples:Guild Wars, World of Warcraft, Planetside

Episodic: Instead of presenting one massive story at the outset, episodic games deliver short scenes on a semi-regular basis, which build on each other to create a richly developed narrative. These games are downloaded straight to players’ consoles or computers, and often focus more on story than on combat.Great if you were a kid who: devoured chapter-book series whole; preferred continuity in your Saturday-morning cartoonsExamples:Tales from the Borderlands, The Walking Dead, Life is Strange